Here is another project I would like to share. This was sone a while back, maybe a couple of years ago.

I have always been a fan of one watch built by Seiko for their pilots of the Japanese Ailrines. I don't know the model number but I have always known it as the Seiko ANA. This is a pilot type watch with the 7s movement, 39mm case with a coin edge bezel. It is a limited production item but it comes up once in a while on the Watch sales forums.

This has been affordably priced but still a little over my budget. At 39mm it is also a little small for my wrist, at least being a pilot type watch. So I decided to make my own, similar in overall design but denitely different and one of a kind. This could be a watch dedicated to The Frecce Tricolori, (Italian, literally Tricolour Arrows), officially known as the 313° Gruppo Addestramento Acrobatico, is the aerobatic demonstration team of the Italian Aeronautica Militare based by my original home town.

For the base watch I chose the Seiko SARZ005 because it is about 42 mm and larger then most regular Seiko watches. It also has a nice large crown which was important to me in terms of the overall look and function. The movement is the new 4R36 24 jewels which handwinds and hacks, yes just like a regular ETA movement.

The dial is the one of the Seiko SNKF011 or BFS (Big Freaking Seiko) and as a matter of fact I had used a similar dial a few years ago in earlier attempt to make a pilot watch, but since then I had to sell it. The hour and minute hands are from a Seiko SRP043 (SPORK) Diver watch. The seconds hand is from a Seiko Stargate.

So all original Seiko parts. Lugs are 20mm. The watch originally comes with a solid links bracelet which tapers a bit, it is nothing special.

Personally I would have preferred 22mm lugs also because I don't have 20mm straps. What I ended up doing is use a Leather band that I had which is 22mm but has the ends shaved a bit to fit into 20mm lugs. This is a nice vintage tobacco leather from Debaufre with rivets. I am not particularly happy with it but it will do for the time being.

One nice thing is that I did not have to shake this to get it started, just wind the crown and it started ticking away...

Here are a few crappy photos including the usual dust specs...

Lume is of course excellent, bright and lasts all night, I know I tried it last night. Awesome Seiko lume. See photos to have an idea.

...personally I'd like it more with a solid bezel as opposed to the one you've used.

Thanks for posting.

Thank you and I would have used a smooth bezel if there was one available. But in doing these projects most of the times I have to use what is available and this is what there was. I think they did this mostly because otherwise the bezel would be too wide... More to come...

Beautiful hands, a great look; nice, nice work. I will guess that, in person, rapid legibility

is pretty much perfect at all times.

Thank you very much and yeah, I am a practical guy and always look at that aspect of things. I much prefer a nice legible and simple dial/hands set up to a complex one, the watch after all is for telling the time...